Tigers' 2024 Opening Day roster taking shape

This story was excerpted from Jason Beck's Tigers Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

LAKELAND, Fla. -- The Tigers have been known in recent years to take their final Spring Training roster decisions down to the final days -- and even hours -- before Opening Day. Last year, they waited for a last-minute trade for Zach McKinstry. This time, it didn't go to the end.

Detroit’s Opening Day positional roster arguably seemed clear from the moment the Tigers signed third baseman Gio Urshela in late February, pushing Matt Vierling and McKinstry to infield/outfield roles and greatly reducing Akil Baddoo’s chances to make the club. Still, several players provided twists and turns this spring, from Ryan Kreidler’s productive spring complete with defensive gems to Eddys Leonard’s barrage of hard-hit balls.

Though Detroit could yet again end up making a last-minute move, Thursday’s flurry of roster moves means that the Tigers have 13 position players left in Major League camp -- the exact number needed for the Opening Day roster:

Catchers: Jake Rogers, Carson Kelly

Infielders: Spencer Torkelson, Colt Keith, Javier Báez, Gio Urshela

Outfielders: Parker Meadows, Riley Greene, Mark Canha, Kerry Carpenter

Utility players: Matt Vierling, Zach McKinstry, Andy Ibáñez

Combined with Friday's moves to finalize the rotation, the Tigers still have 15 pitchers left in camp -- and they need to whittle that number to 13.

Still, the makeup of this roster says a few things about the club and the lineup, among them:

1. This is a tougher roster to crack
No. 8 prospect Justyn-Henry Malloy posted an .891 OPS with 23 homers, 83 RBIs and 110 walks last year with Triple-A Toledo. He hit three more home runs in Spring Training this year. In previous seasons, he not only would have had an inside track at an Opening Day roster spot, but the Tigers probably would have found a regular spot in the lineup for him.

Instead, the club sent him back to Toledo on Thursday, in large part because it couldn’t guarantee him regular at-bats in this lineup. That says something about the elevation of the talent level in Detroit.

Malloy will get his shot at some point this year, when at-bats inevitably open up due to injuries or performance, but he won’t get the first shot. Until then, he’ll be working on repeating his offensive performance while using regular outfield reps to improve his defense. It's the same on the pitching side, where Matt Manning was optioned to Toledo despite an encouraging spring performance that included more swinging strikes.

2. Báez remains a key cog
Even with a base hit on Thursday, Báez entered Friday just 4-for-38 (.105) with two sacrifice flies, one walk and 13 strikeouts this spring. So far, his work to become more disciplined at the plate has yielded mixed results at best; he’s still chasing pitches off the plate, but not as regularly.

Báez also has had some solid contact go unrewarded, such as his 105 mph line drive directly at Phillies third baseman Scott Kingery on Tuesday night. But Báez’s offensive woes haven’t bled into his defensive work, which remains a key part of Detroit’s infield. Thus, while Kreidler played some outstanding shortstop this spring with better offensive production, the Tigers will have him getting regular at-bats at Triple-A Toledo and looming as a potential call to Detroit if injuries force an everyday substitute at short. Detroit can use McKinstry or Urshela at short if Báez needs a day off or a short break, but the Tigers clearly see Báez as the regular starter.

3. The kids have potential platoon complements
Meadows had possibly the most impressive Spring Training of any Tigers outfielder, putting on a show both offensively and defensively while putting his speed and athleticism to work. Still, the Tigers have played Vierling in center field a half-dozen times this spring, more than he has played third base. Even if Meadows has made his claim to be an everyday player, Detroit has Vierling ready to go against tough lefties if needed. The same goes for Keith, whose debut at second base could be complemented by Ibáñez. Not that either needs that break against stingy southpaws, but the Tigers will at least have the option.